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Monday, 17 June 2013

XBOX ONE VS PS4

This has been a longer-than-usual console
cycle filled with new peripherals, revisions, and many, many bundles,
but now we’ve met the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One.
The next-gen is just a few months away and as of E3 2013 the curtain
has been almost fully pulled back. All the vital information about the
Xbox One and PS4 has been revealed now that we have a good idea of the
game lineup, the hardware, used game policies, and, most importantly,
the prices.
A few months ago we nominally met the PlayStation 4, then the Xbox One was revealed on May 21st.
Both events were interesting, but lacking in critical information. As
of this week, we officially have that information and are ready to put
the Xbox One and PS4 head-to-head.

Xbox One vs PS4: Hardware

It’s been a few years since AMD
has scored any major wins in the hardware space as Intel continues to
rule the PC market. However, the Xbox One will run on an 8-core 64-bit
x86 Jaguar AMD CPU/GPU combo known as an APU. In the case of the PS4,
Sony also opted for an 8-core x86-64 AMD Jaguar, but the GPU is about
one third more powerful in the PS4. This likely won’t make much
difference with launch titles, but as the hardware ages, Sony should
have a slight edge. Remember, the PS3 had great power, but it was very
difficult to unlock because of the Cell architecture. Now both platforms
run on x86, so the PS4 will be as easy to program for, and Sony-focused
studios want be the only developers able to get the full experience
from the PlayStation’s hardare.

As for memory, both devices will be packing 8GB of high-speed RAM. Microsoft is using DDR3, while Sony is using GDDR5 RAM, which is both spendy and speedy. The PlayStation 4
will have a local hard drive that is expected to be 500GB, and can be
switched out at the user’s convenience, just like you could with the
PS3. The Xbox One will rock a 500GB built-in hard drive as well, but
cannot be switched out. No secondary console models (later or smaller
drives, or with SSDs) have been announced yet.
We already know that the Xbox One will not support hard drive
swapping/upgrading, but Sony has not yet announced the PS4′s support for
this.
After its experiment with DVD and HD-DVD, Microsoft has had little
choice but to hop on the Blu-ray bandwagon. You can finally throw out
that HD-DVD version of King Kong — it’s over. The Xbox One will
playback Blu-ray movies, and games will be on Blu-ray discs. However,
there are some caveats in that respect that we’ll cover shortly. Sony is again including a Blu-ray drive for movies and games, satisfied in its victory.

Xbox One vs PS4: The new controllers

Every new gaming console comes with new controllers — it’s nothing
unexpected. What’s unique about this generation is that they’re also
coming with new cameras out of the gate (for an additional fee). Rather
than build Kinect into the Xbox One, the new camera has been pumped up.
It’s a bit larger, more angular, and much more sensitive. It’s got HD
resolution, and can detect as little as a 1% change in position.
Along with voice controls, Kinect is at the heart of Microsoft’s big
new UI paradigm. Just wave and shout at your Xbox and it does stuff! The
PS4 will have a new peripheral, the successor to the often forgotten PS
Eye, called (creatively) the PlayStation 4 Eye. This is basically a
Kinect clone right down to the voice interaction. Sony has only said the
cameras are “high-sensitivity.” However, it will still have some PS Move DNA,
as evidenced by the Move functionality of the new controller. We won’t
know how well this works until Sony graces us with a full demo.
As
for the controllers, they’re definitely recognizable as coming from one
camp or the other. Sony’s DualShock 4 has better triggers, a built-in
speaker, and concave thumbstick pads. Right up at the top is a Share
button, which is used to blast game replays and multiplayer content out
across the PSN. There is also a touch-sensitive area in the middle of
the controller. Microsoft worked to streamline an already good
controller. The new Xbox One controller has slimmed down a little bit,
making it easier to hold. That big battery pack from the backside has
been removed, making it a bit more like the PS4 controller in overall
shape.
The one change that will probably make the biggest impact on gamers
is the revamped d-pad. The controller now has a Nintendo-style ‘+’ pad
instead of the weird tipping directional arrows from the 360.